Always
by Poisoned Pink
Summary: "I loved you before, I love you now, and I will love you then. I'll love you always." "I love you too."


**Important Plot Information:** This story does not take place in any specific timeline of the show nor does it fall into any specific time period. I can tell you it takes place in more modern times seeing as they have things like smart phones. This **isn't** an all human story! They are still wizards and Loke is still a celestial spirit who doesn't age.

 **Author's Note:** I really hope you guys enjoy this story as it took me a long time to create. Throughout the past two weeks I have put a lot of my creative energy into this fic. I often got periods of writer's block that could last from a few hours to a few days. Basically I'm quite proud of myself for pushing through and just the story in general. Thank you for taking your time to read it.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail; all rights go to the creator Hiro Mashima.

* * *

On top of a small hill in a meadow, a willow tree hung down, casting a shadow across the soft green grass. A tall figure sat in the shade leaning against the trunk of the tree. "Oh Lucy…" he whispered, lightly brushing his fingers over the cool granite.

The grave was simple yet beautiful. It was a small piece of granite with Lucy Heartfilia written in swirly font. 15 different keys were etched into the stone making a half circle around the name. Each key was slightly different from the other and 10 of them were outlined in gold.

Smiling he picked up the picture frame that had been propped up against the granite. "I remember the first time we came here," he said softly, closing his eyes and allowing himself to be swallowed in the memory.

* * *

 _"Where are you taking me?" Lucy giggled, trying for the hundredth time to get Loke to remove his hands from her eyes._

 _He shook his head trying not to laugh, "Now, now my love, patience is key." His voice was silky and persuading but Lucy was having none of it. "Well at least tell me if we're almost there! It feels like we've been walking for hours!"_

 _"_ _Hey now," although her eyes were closed Lucy knew that he was smirking, "I offered to carry you." "That's not what I meant!" she shrieked, her voice going up an octave as a blush spread across her cheeks._

 _Lucy stopped walking when she felt Loke come to a stop behind her. He leaned down pressing his lips to her ear and he softly whispered, "We're here."_

 _She shivered as his hot breath tickled her ear and she felt his hands uncover her eyes dropping down to hold her waist. She didn't open her eyes right away, simply enjoying the way he touched her._

 _"_ _Well, are you going to look?" he asked with raised eyebrows. She shrugged, slowly opening her eyes and gasping at the sight before her._

 _They were stood on the outskirts of a large meadow. The grass was bright green and soft with different colored flowers growing every which way. "It's beautiful Loke! How did you find it?" She questioned as she turned herself around in his arms so she could press her face into his chest._

 _He chose to ignore her question instead simply replying, "I'm glad you like it, but there's more."_

 _Lucy hugged the celestial spirit tighter, "This is too much!"_

 _Loke shook his head smiling down at her, "Nothing is too much for you my dear, now came on." Lucy nodded allowing Loke to grab her hand and pull her along through the meadow. As they walked Lucy slipped off her sandals giggling as the grass tickled her feet._

 _They reached the bottom of the hill and Loke turned towards Lucy, "I'm afraid I need you to close your eyes again."_

 _She shot him a look that plainly said, are you kidding me? But complied shutting her eyelids, letting the darkness envelope her. "Lead the- ahhhh!" she cut off with a small scream as her feet were swept into the air as she was hauled into Loke's arms._

 _"_ _WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! I told you no carrying me!" Lucy shrieked, curling her hand into a fist and punching her spirit in the shoulder. She could feel his tall frame shake with laughter and she punched him again, still keeping her eyes closed._

 _"_ _Carrying you will simply make it easier to get you up the hill."_

 _Lucy sighed feeling a bit silly for overreacting but shrugged and mumbled, "Well you could have told me that to start with."_

 _The two stayed quiet and it wasn't long before Loke came to a stop and slowly lowered Lucy to her feet. This time the blonde didn't hesitate to open her eyes and take in the sight in front of her. There was a large blanket spread out in the grass with a picnic basket placed in the center. Beside the basket was an ice bucket with a bottle of sparkling cider and two champagne glasses. Lucy couldn't speak, she just turned around and threw herself at Loke tackling him to the ground. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she cried from her spot on top of him._

 _Loke laughed wiggling out from under her and standing up. He helped Lucy up and pulled her over to the blanket, sitting down and yanking her down into his lap. "Hey!" she laughed pushing Loke playfully._

 _"_ _You know you love it."_

 _"_ _You're right," she whispered leaning down so her lips were hovering above his, "I do love it."_

 _"_ _Lucy darling," he whispered tangling his hands in her soft golden locks, "Please don't tease me." And he closed the small distance between them connecting their lips._

 _Lucy pulled away and leaned down her lips pressed at Loke's ear, "I would never dream of it lion."_

 _She pulled herself off his lap and plopped herself down on the blanket, smirking at him. Loke sighed hanging his head, "of course not." This earned him a laugh and he looked up at her smiling. He loved her laugh; it rang like bells and was always able to lift his spirits._

 _"_ _Let's eat," he said opening the basket and laying out the food. While he did that Lucy leaned across him, grabbing the sparkling cider and the two glasses, pouring some for both of them. She handed him one giggling as their fingers brushed against each other._

 _Loke lifted his glass and Lucy mimicked him. "To…" he paused to think about it. "To us," Lucy filled in for him. Loke nodded and they laughed clinking their glasses together._

 _About an hour later when the sun started to set and the food had been packed away Loke stood up, "one more surprise."_

 _Lucy shook her head, "You spoil me."_

 _The redhead shrugged, "Well you are my princess." He leaned down and brushed his thumb against Lucy's bright red cheeks. In turn this caused her to blush an even brighter shade of red, "I hate you."_

 _"_ _You love me."_

 _"_ _Maybe."_

 _Loke chuckled and walked around the large trunk of the tree. He seemed to remember something because he peeked around the tree so he was looking at Lucy, "close your eyes beautiful."_

 _The celestial wizard threw her hands in the air, "Again?!"_

 _"_ _Yes again."_

 _She sighed shaking her head, "fine." When Loke was sure her eyes were closed he flipped the switch and walked back over to his girlfriend sitting down and wrapping his arms around her, "open them."_

 _Lucy did as he said and placed her hand over her mouth, "Loke… this is… incredible." The large willow tree had been draped in strands of white lights. It illuminated the meadow casting a soft glow of golden light over it. Lucy started to weep softly as she stared at the large willow tree. "Why are you crying?" Loke asked in alarm._

 _"_ _Did you really do all this… for me?"_

 _"_ _Of course, I would go to the moon and back for you." He laid down stretching himself over the blanket, and then grabbed Lucy softly pulled her down so her head was resting on his chest. She sighed in content curling into his side._

 _"_ _I love you Lucy Heartfilia." He felt her go still and for a second he was worried she didn't feel the same way._

 _"_ _Will you love me…" she finally said her voice sorrowful, "when I'm old, and grey, and wrinkled?"_

 _Loke was stunned by the question at first but he quickly regained his composure, "I loved you before, I love you now, and I will love you then. I'll love you always." He felt her relax against him loosening her grip but not letting go._

 _"_ _I love you too."_

* * *

Loke sighed opening his eyes, "that was the first time I told you I loved you." A large gust of wind blew past him causing the flowers to sway. The spirit pictured the wind as her laugh; surely she was making fun of him for being so soppy.

He put down the picture frame using his now free hand to toy with the golden band that rested on his finger. "Remember our wedding night?" he questioned, as if expecting someone to answer him.

* * *

 _"I can't do this! Lucy cried, hiking up her long white dress and turning to exit the tent._

 _"_ _Loke is out there waiting for you, if you leave it'll crush him. You know how much he loves you." Erza said, shooting Lucy a pointed look._

 _"_ _Everything is wrong! This entire wedding is going to be a disaster! And when everything goes wrong Loke will hate me! He'll realize that I'm stupid and weak and that he deserves so much better than me!"_

 _Levy spoke up from where she sat, "You're not stupid or weak! You're a member of Fairy Tail's strongest team!"_

 _Lucy shook her head, "I'm not the strong one. My spirits are strong, my teammates are strong. I am weak."_

 _Erza slammed her fist down onto the table, "Enough with this nonsense! Without you I wouldn't be alive! You've saved my life countless times and if Gray and Natsu were here they would surely agree. You wouldn't be a member a Fairy Tail if you were weak!"_

 _Lucy just shook her head dropping it into her hands. Erza sighed shrugging her shoulders, "But since you obviously don't believe me I'll bring in my reinforcements. Come in guys!"_

 _The tent door opened and three boys walked in. "I agree with Erza! You've save me a ton of times!" Natsu yelled._

 _Gray nodded his head in agreement, "Yeah you're awesome Lucy."_

 _The last person came forward standing in front of Lucy, "do you really believe that anything could stop me from marrying you?"_

 _She sighed opening her mouth to speak but he cut her off, "You're anything but weak. You're incredibly strong!"_

 _Lucy shook her head, "You're wrong. I know you're just trying to make me feel better."_

 _"_ _You're right, call off the wedding, I don't want to marry her," Loke spoke with an even voice and didn't even flinch when Lucy started to sob._

 _He ignored the protests that echoed around the tent and continued speaking, "I mean, I want to marry Lucy Heartfilia, the best celestial wizard ever, who never uses her spirits as a shield and fights alongside them like equals. I want to marry the stubborn, reckless girl I proposed to, the one that would never let a bit of stage fright get to her? So what do you say? Will you be her again?"_

 _Lucy sighed rubbing at her eyes and then placed her hands on her hips giving the spirit a pointed look, "What are you doing in here?"_

 _Loke looked astounded, "Huh?"_

 _"_ _Don't you know its bad luck to see the bride in her dress before the wedding?"_

 _Everybody laughed in relief and Loke pulled Lucy closer hugging her. She spoke, her cheek pressed against his shoulder, "I'm ready when you are."_

 _"_ _Good," his voice was gentle and reassuring, "because I don't want to have to wait a second later to call you my wife."_

 _Two hours later after the vows had been said, the speeches had been made, and the cake had been cut all the guests stood on the makeshift dance floor- which was just a large piece of finished wood that some of the guild members had brought into the meadow- swaying back and forth to the soft music._

 _Lucy took a moment to survey all the couples that were dancing from where she stood in the middle of the floor wrapped in Loke's arms._

 _Bisca and Alzack were dancing, somewhat awkwardly, due to Asuka being held in between them. The little girl had insisted that her parents danced with her, and though she had stated off bouncy and giggly the rhythmic swaying had lulled her to sleep and she snored softly her head resting on her father's shoulder._

 _Mirajane was giggling at Cana who was blushing like crazy as she tried to find the correct place to rest her hands on the white haired girl's hips. Mira, however, found no embarrassment in letting her arms hang on the brunette's shoulders as they danced together._

 _Juvia, who had started of crying because Gray was not dancing with her, was now practically glowing as Lyon spun her around the dance floor, chattering on about how beautiful and perfect the water mage was._

 _You could hardy call what Gray and Natsu were doing dancing. It was more like stumbling around and arguing about who should be leading. But Lucy found it adorable nonetheless._

 _Evergreen, who was not satisfied whit Elfman's dancing skills, was more coaching the poor man on how to dance correctly than actually dancing with him. And throughout the entire lesson all he could do was sulk and mumble about how "unmanly it was"._

 _After lots of convincing, Freed had finally coaxed Laxus out onto the dance floor, but it seemed that the blonde didn't know how to dance at all. He continuously stepped on Freed's feet causing both of them to cringe, one out of pain and the other out of guilt._

 _Lucy wasn't even sure what was happening between Levy and Gajeel. The two were all over the place. The iron dragon slayer, like Laxus, had no clue how to dance, but it seemed that neither did the bluenette. They tripped over each other's feet and Levy nearly toppled over at least three different times._

 _Erza, who was an expert yet slightly over the top dancer, was spinning Jellal so fast he looked as though he was about to amazed Lucy that even through all that he was still able to stare at Erza lovingly._

 _Wendy and Romeo seemed to be the only two that were dancing normally but they still had their own problems. Neither of them could look the other in the eye and they instead chose to stare up at the sky with scarlet cheeks._

 _"_ _Our friends are absolutely crazy," the blonde murmured, her voice muffled by the fabric of Loke's tux._

 _"_ _Yeah, no kidding."_

 _The two laughed and Lucy lifted her head lightly kissing Loke._

 _"_ _I love you," he whispered in a gentle voice._

 _Her voice was lighter this time, less serious than the last time she had spoke the words, "will you still love me… when I'm old, and grey, and wrinkled?"_

 _"_ _I loved you before, I love you now, and I will love you then, I'll love you always," his voice was passionate and it made the celestial wizard's heart melt._

 _"_ _I love you too."_

* * *

"That was one crazy night," Loke said with a chuckle, "You ended up getting so drunk you could've rivaled Cana."

He could practically feel his shoulder tingle, knowing that if Lucy were here she would have punched him for saying such a thing. Even if it was true.

He looked down at the bottom of the hill smiling t the small figure that was running and skipping carelessly in the grass, "thank god for the guild, I would never have been able to take care of Layla by myself."

 _"_ _Are you really sure you're okay with this?" from where she sat on the white hospital bed._

 _"_ _Yes beautiful, I'm positive. Even if she or he won't be biologically mine I'll still love them just the same, love is not determined by blood."_

* * *

 _"_ _Okay, if you're sure…"_

 _"_ _I am sure."_

 _"_ _Okay then, doctor, I'm ready."_

 _9 months later Lucy lay in the exact same bed with Loke sitting in a chair next to her._

 _"_ _I can't do this! I'm not ready!"She cried as another contraction hit._

 _"_ _Don't worry dear-ahhh!" He broke off with a screech._

 _"_ _Chill it with the death grip babe, you're gonna break my hand." He cowered slightly at the glare he received and was quick to backtrack, "I mean, squeeze as hard as you need to! I know how much pain you must be in!"_

 _"_ _That's what I thought you said," Lucy ground out through clenched teeth._

 _The midwife looked up from where she stood at the end of the bed, "It's time to start pushing Lucy!"_

 _Loke looked at her with wide eyes, "Are you ready for this?"_

 _"_ _As long as you're here with me I'll always be ready."_

 _The midwife smiled warmly, "Okay then let's start."_

 _"_ _Ahhh! Holy shit!"_

 _"_ _Lucy! Goddamn it that hurt!"_

 _"_ _Shut up asshole!"_

 _Gray sighed from his place leaning against the wall, "You would think it was Loke that was giving birth in there."_

 _Natsu nodded in agreement as he paced the white floor, "seriously."_

 _The second that Lucy had gone into labor Loke had sent a mass text to all their friends. And of course they had all rushed over and gathered in the hallway waiting for Lucy to have her baby. As hours had passed the crowd had thinned out. The three pregnant women, Levy, Evergreen, and Juvia had been persuaded by their husbands to go home, knowing that the screaming was sure to frighten them. Wendy and Romeo had taken all the children out into the waiting room. It would have normally been a handful for the two teenagers seeing ad they were dealing with Gray and Natsu's son Igneel, Jellal and Erza's twins Sydney and James, and Alzack and Bisca's daughter Asuka, but even the kids seemed to understand the severity of the situation and stayed fairly calm. That left Bisca, Alzack, Mirajane, Cana, Gray, Natsu, Freed, Laxus, Jellal, and Erza all waiting anxiously._

 _"_ _Oh my god!"_

 _"_ _Loke! I swear to all that is holy if you don't shut up I will kill you!"_

 _Everybody cringed feeling bad for the two of them._

 _"_ _Loke! Ahhh! I can't! I can't! I can't!"_

 _Bisca, Alzack, Erza, and Jellal were all looking at the door with worried expressions, knowing firsthand what was going on behind the door._

 _Jellal shuddered just thinking about it, when Erza was giving birth to the twins she had gripped his hand so hard she broke it._

 _The heard the excited call of, "I can see the head! Just a few more pushes!"_

 _This was followed by a few more screams and then complete silence._

 _"_ _What happened?" Natsu asked with wide eyes._

 _"_ _I don't know," Gray started but quickly cut himself off when the sound of a baby crying reached his ears._

 _Smiles broke out and they all hugged each other cheering silently as they waited for the door to open,_

 _When it did they were met with a teary eyed nurse, "the happy parents requested that you all come in."_

 _"_ _Look at her," Lucy whispered as she cradled the baby in her arms._

 _"_ _I know she's so beautiful."_

 _After introducing all of their friends to Layla they ordered them to go home and get some rest. The two lay in the hospital bed together cooing at the newborn._

 _Lucy sighed in content as she rested her head against Loke's shoulder._

 _"_ _I love you."_

 _The words seemed to come naturally to her now, "Will you love me... When I'm old, and grey, and wrinkled?"_

 _"I loved you before, I love you now, and I will love you then. I'll love you always," the words came just as easily to him as they did to her._

 _"_ _I love you too."_

* * *

Loke sighed as the memory faded away, "that was a very long day, you nearly broke my hand but it was worth it."

And it really had been. Loke wouldn't trade Layla for anything. He remembered a reporter from Sorcerer's Weekly asking him if he resented the little girl for what happened. But the man just didn't understand what it was like to have a child. "Don't get me wrong, there's not a day that goes by that I don't wish that I could've saved you both…"

* * *

 _"_ _Loke! Take Layla and get out of here!" Lucy screamed as she tried to land a kick on one of the dark wizards that surrounded her. It backfired and the man caught her leg flipping her._

 _"_ _Are you crazy? I can't just leave you here!" Loke yelled back. He had his daughter tucked behind his leg and was trying his best to protect the young girl from any oncoming attacks._

 _"_ _Forget about me!" she paused for a second so she could dodge a punch that was aimed at her stomach, "think about Layla! She has to live!"_

 _Loke made a split decision when he felt Layla clutching at his leg her whole body trembling. He picked her up sprinting, 'I'll be right back Lucy! Hold on!"_

 _He carried the little girl to the edge of the meadow and then set her down crouching in front of her, "Layla baby, I need you to go back to the guild. Everything is going to be okay, just stay on the path and find someone from the guild!"_

 _He heard the sound of Lucy screaming and flinched, "You have to go!"_

 _The five year old sobbed, "But what about you and mommy?!"_

 _"_ _We'll be fine! But I have to go help mommy fight okay? Be careful and go!"_

 _She continued to sob but started to run down the path, her small form trembling as she went._

 _He stood up and turned around only to be greeted by the group of dark wizards that had originally been targeting Lucy, "Now, you didn't honestly think we were just going to let the little girl go did you?"_

 _"_ _I won't let you touch her!"_

 _One of them steeped forward shooting Loke a menacing glance, "we've already taken care of the celestial wizard and once we're done with you we'll get the child too."_

 _We've already taken care of the blonde? Surely they didn't mean… He looked past the men and let out a horrified cry when he saw Lucy lying unmoving in the grass, "What the hell did you do to her?!"_

 _"_ _LOKE!"_

 _The celestial spirit turned his attention to the sky recognizing the fire dragon slayer's voice immediately._

 _"_ _Natsu? What are you doing here?"_

 _Happy dropped him off on the ground beside Loke, "No time for that! Go help Lucy! I'll take care of these losers!"_

 _Loke sprinted towards the girl paying no attention to the fire dragon slayer behind him. He skidded to a stop in front of his wife and dropped down to his knees._

 _"_ _Lucy?" he paused for a second staring down at her still form. He felt his heart beat faster when he got no response._

 _"_ _LUCY?!"_

 _Loke watched as her eyes slowly opened and she looked up at him with sad eyes, "Loke."_

 _His eyes roamed over her body until they landed on her stomach. Her hands were covering her abdomen as if she was trying to shield him from the truth. But he knew, he could see the blood that was seeping through her shirt and trailing down pooling in the grass._

 _"_ _How?" the spirit choked out._

 _"_ _One of them pulled out a sword… I didn't even see it coming," she whispered, her voice hoarse._

 _"_ _Lucy don't worry, you're going to be okay, I promise. Happy can carry you back to the guild, and Wendy can heal you."_

 _She stopped him by gently reaching out and placing her hand on his arm, "it's too late."_

 _"_ _No it's not! It can't be!" He yelled, tears rolling down his cheeks, "What can I do?"_

 _"_ _Stay here with me… until I fall asleep."_

 _He pulled her head onto his lap and leaned down kissing away her tears, "Okay, whatever will make you happy."_

 _"_ _Is Layla okay?"_

 _Loke smiled softly, "She'll be fine. Natsu's taking out the dark wizards as we speak, there's no way they'll be able to lay a hand on her."_

 _They sat in silence for a few moments, only the noise of Natsu's yelling filling the air._

 _"_ _I love you."_

 _Her voice was ragged and weak but she still spoke, "Will you love me… even though I will never grow old, and grey, and wrinkled? Will you love me even after I'm gone?"_

 _His face hovered above hers and a single tear dripped off his cheek falling onto hers, "I loved you before, I love you now, and I will love you then. I'll love you always."_

 _"_ _I love you too."_

* * *

Loke wiped away the tears that had begun to fall down onto his cheeks, "I can't believe that it's been two years since that day."

"Daddy, daddy!"

Loke stood up just in time to catch the seven year old girl that launched herself into his arms, "hey Lay."

"Look what I got for mommy!" he placed her down onto the ground and she smiled holding out the bouquet of flowers that she had picked from the meadow.

"They're beautiful! I'm sure she'll love them!"

Layla giggled and kneeled down carefully placing the flowers next to the gravestone. She stood up and waited as her father bent down so she could hop on his back.

The two of them came to the meadow every Saturday afternoon; it was a procedure they never broke. Layla would play in the meadow and Loke would sit under the willow tree next to Lucy's grave and talk to her. Then when Layla had had picked a whole bunch of flowers she would skip up the small hill and lay them on the grave, replacing the ones she had put there the week before. And when they were ready to go home Layla would hop on Loke's back and he would give her a piggyback ride home.

He walked out of the meadow and started on the path, and when they were almost out of sight Loke turned around so he was staring at the large tree.

"I love you always."

* * *

 _Lucy smiled warmly tears brimming at her eyes as she watched the retreating forms of her husband and daughter._

 _"_ _I love you too."_

* * *

 **Author's Note:** thank you guys so much for reading my work! I greatly appreciate it. LoLu is my otp forever and always 3 I had a lot of fun writing this.

Sincerely,

Poisoned Pink


End file.
